Fall & Winter Skin Care

Prevent Fall & Winter's Skin Problems Now 

Cold weather is really hard on your skin. It starts in fall and 'snowballs' in winter (yes pun intended). You're not imagining it, your skin problems are worse!

It's well documented that acne, rosacea, seborrhea and dry skin all go crazy in the winter.

We are not sure why, but it's true.

Acne

Start a good acne routine and control pimples and blackheads on face, neck, back and chest. My Ultimate Acne Kit uses medicated benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid to fight bacteria and blackheads. My Pityrosporum Folliculitis (aka Fungal Acne) Kit adds pyrithione zinc to target the yeast that adds to this acne misadventure. My Back Acne Kit does the same with products more appropriate for back and chest use in the shower. 

Rosacea and Seborrhea

These rashes always worsen in winter. Tackle them with my Facial Flaking and Redness Kit. Scalp seborrhea responds nicely to Foaming Zinc Cleanser and my favorite scalp scrubber. Add my Omega Face Oil for beardruff. 

Winter Itch and Dry Skin

This winter skin problem impacts everyone. The dry skin cycle starts in the fall and gets worse in winter. It's even got a name - 'Winter's Itch'. The good news is that a clinical study at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine has shown that consistent use of daily moisturizer and gentle skin cleansers is highly effective at preventing dry skin. But not all cleansers are gentle and not all moisturizers are rich enough. 

Find my patient-proven and trusted fall and winter skin care products to prevent dry skin below the article!

Dry skin care deserves special note:

Why does your skin get dry in fall and winter?

Cold weather outside, and hot dehumidified air indoors, pull out skin water to damage your skin barrier. Important barrier lipids are lost and skin protein is damaged. It ‘snowballs’ metaphorically until chapped irritant dermatitis hurts, itches and leaves your skin inflamed.

I've got the right soaps, skin cleansers, moisturizers, face oils and serums to fend off winter's itch; keep hydrated, dewy and comfortable skin as the weather conspires to do otherwise! - Dr. Bailey

Avoid the 5 big skin care mistakes that lead to winter itch and winter skin chapping:

Mistake #1: Using hot water and harsh soaps to shower and wash your hands.

Hot water strips skin oils. Add harsh soaps strip oils.  Turn your water temperature down and use only gentle soaps and skin cleansers during fall and winter. Rinse all soap residue off skin; retained soap residue pulls out lipids and will damage skin protein even after you have towel dried your skin.

Mistake #2: Not switching your moisturizers up in the winter to richer and more hydrating products.

Winter sucks the water right out of your skin. Damaged skin lipids and protein leave skin even more vulnerable.

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  Restore lost skin lipids. Choose a moisturizer with oils that helps restore lost lipids. Look key ingredients that can step in for lost skin oils including jojoba, sunflower, avocado, kukui, castor seed, pomegranate, rosehip, coconut, ceramides and squalane. Butters such as shea and cocoa are also time-honored emollients.
• Bind water inside your skin. Products with water binding ingredients help hold water inside your skin such as glycerin, hyaluronic acid, and sodium PCA (part of your skin’s Natural Moisturizing Factor).
• Enrich your facial moisturizer. Boost lipid content with a few drops of Booster Oil added to your facial moisturizer to help prevent seasonal facial dryness.

I've got the right products with the right combination of these key elements to fight winter dry skin.

Mistake #3: Not applying moisturizer correctly.

Moisturizers work best when applied within the magic 3 minutes after toweling skin dry to trap water that soaked into your skin while you bathed or washed. They also need to be applied morning and night. Chapped hands need moisturizer applied many times a day after washing.

Mistake #4: Forgetting to moisturize your lips often.

Lip skin has less barrier strength and chaps easily, as you have undoubtedly experienced in the past! Keep hypoallergenic lip balm handy, apply it throughout the day and at bedtime. Avoid allergens in lip balms that lead to chapping and ‘lip balm addiction’. Ingredients to avoid are camphor, menthol, fragrance and salicylic acid.

Mistake #5: Exposing hands and face to the elements.

Harsh weather pulls water out of skin. Cover hands with gloves and as much of your face as possible with a scarf or facial muff.

Prevent dryness and keep your skin healthy this year.

Commit to the daily use of gentle skin cleansers and deeply hydrating moisturizers and prevent seasonal skin dryness. It's really that easy!

Best Moisturizers to Prevent Fall and Winter Dry Skin from Head to Toe for the Entire Family

Natural moisturizers made with organic botanical oils. Keep one in the bathroom ready to be used when you step out of the shower.

1. Natural Face, Hand and Body Lotion™. A natural lotion that is a favorite for the entire family. Works well on hairy skin too so men love it. My husband uses this every day after the shower!
2. Natural Face and Body Butter Cream™. This rich butter deeply hydrates without ever feeling greasy on your skin. It's my personal favorite winter moisturizer.

Best Facial Moisturizer to Prevent Dry Skin

Moisturize your face twice a day after washing to prevent dry facial skin this winter. Daily Moisturizing Face Cream  My daily facial moisturizer combines squalane and ceramides for state-of-the-art skin hydration. Add a few drops of my Omega Face oil to enrich the lipid content if you have really dry skin.

Best Hand Cream to Prevent Dry Hands

Pro-tip: Keep this tube at your kitchen sink.

Best Face Serums and Face Oils to Prevent Dry Fall and Winter Skin

Up your winter skin hydration strategy with these two dry skin game changers. 

1. Instantly Luminous Multi-Action Serum™ My skin craves this serum because it is loaded with water binding hyaluronic acid, sodium PCA and glycerin in just the right forms and ratios for the best results. Apply it right after washing your face and under your moisturizer. 
2. Omega Enriched Face Booster Oil I drip a few drops into my nightly moisturizer to enhance skin lipid replenishment and barrier repair. 

Pro-tip: I apply my Omega Face Oil to the back of my hands and nails at bedtime. It also makes a highly effective beard oil to condition beard hair and fight seasonal beardruff!

Best Hand and Body Cleansers to Prevent Fall and Winter Chapping

Stock the house with the right gentle skin cleansers for every skin cleansing need. 

1. Naturally Best Bar Soap for Dry Skin™ An all-natural scent-free general face and body bar soap for the entire family. 
2. All Natural Shower Gel My ultra-hypoallergenic shower gel is fragrance-free and phthalate-free. Stock every shower and bath to avoid the harsh and chemical-laden shower gels.

Best pH Balanced Gentle and Non-Drying Facial Cleanser for Healthy Winter Skin 

Extremely Gentle Foaming Facial Cleanser This gentle cleanser cleans dirt, oil, and product residue without over-drying delicate winter facial skin. It's my personal favorite facial cleanser.

Best Organic and Non-toxic Lip Balm to Heal and Prevent Chapped Lips

Natural Lip Balm Keep a tube of my truly natural lip balm everywhere and use it all day to keep your lips soft, healthy and comfortable all fall and winter. Brilliantly hypoallergenic to prevent 'addiction to lip balm'! I also apply it every night when I go to bed to hydrate my lips while I sleep.

Tackle fall and winter skin problem with a dermatologist's tool set. Like a trip to the dermatologist without the trip because I make it easy.